Public Integrity Division prosecutors said a
review of Bell city records showed that council members each received
$8,083.25 per month. Prosecutors say that under state law and based on population, part-time
council members in small cities should be paid a $400 monthly stipend (council members in
Maywood earn about $300 a month).
Prosecutors have asked the city for an explanation.

Bell officials say the D.A. office's numbers are misleading because they include the cost of medical insurance,
retirement and other benefits, but they also defend the compensation.

"The average income for a person in our area is $32,000 and $38,000 a
year," Mayor Oscar Hernandez told The Times' Jeff Gottlieb and Ruben Vives. "In a troubled city, the city council should get paid
a little more."